ISTANBUL
The head of a major Turkish aid agency met Monday with Syrian children living in Istanbul as the world marked the 10th anniversary of the beginning of Syria’s civil war.
Kerem Kinik, head of the Turkish Red Crescent, or Kizilay, visited the children in their classroom at the Sancaktepe Community Center.
Kinik also played and sang songs with the children during his brief visit.
“Today, we can talk about more than 1 million babies born outside their homes as refugees, born and raised without seeing their country,” he said, speaking to reporters.
“Unfortunately, we see that despite all efforts, the international system has not been able to establish peace, and unfortunately, there is still no light at the end of the tunnel,” he added.
According to Kinik, the Syrian crisis should be reviewed by focusing on the establishment of peace with policies on protecting people, human rights and dignity.
Syria has been in a civil war since early 2011, since the Bashar al-Assad regime cracked down on pro-democracy protests with unexpected ferocity.
Hundreds of thousands of people have been killed and more than 10 million others displaced over the last decade, according to UN officials.
Turkey hosts some 3.6 million Syrian refugees -- more than any other country in the world.
